“I can’t grow my company if she won’t do her job.”
That’s what my client Suzanne said yesterday when I was sitting in her office. She went on to tell me story after story about how her office manager Liz just wasn’t getting it done. Suzanne felt that Liz wasn’t taking enough initiative, and she wondered if Liz was committed to the company.
It was all driving her crazy.
I can’t tell you how many times I hear this when I’m meeting with clients. In fact, I’ve already heard it three times this week from three separate business owners in three different industries.
These business owners feel the weight of this dilemma every day. They wonder if they have the right person for the job and, most of the time, they’re not really sure how their employees are spending their days. Feeling this way is enough to frustrate even the most enthusiastic entrepreneur.
Fortunately there is a simple solution. Every person in your company (including YOU) needs a job description.
Unless everyone knows who’s doing what, it’s impossible to identify the holes and find the problems. And it’s the holes that often cause the most frustration.
Here’s an example: Liz handles customer invoices as part of her job. To her, this means getting them out on time. Suzanne, on the other hand, thinks that it also means making collection calls and automating the process so it takes less time.
When Suzanne asks Liz if she’s taken care of the invoices, she says yes. A few days later Suzanne sees a report showing unpaid invoices that are 60 – 90 days old and thinks that Liz isn’t doing her job. Liz doesn’t understand why Suzanne is frustrated with her. Getting the picture?
Job descriptions remove assumption. Job descriptions make it easier for everyone to succeed. Job descriptions open communication. Job descriptions identify gaps.
Ready to get started? Here’s what I suggest:
- Go to the conference room or a room with wall space. Tape flip chart paper to the wall or buy a pad of flip chart-sized Post-it Notes (see this Things I Can’t Live Without) and use those. Put one page on the wall for each position in your company, writing the job title at the top.
- Write the job descriptions in detail. Describe the roles, not individuals (i.e., Office Manager Responsibilities vs. Suzie’s job). Be as specific as you can and include details when necessary. For example, instead of “Payroll,” you might write “Payroll including monthly reconciliation, making sure our statements are correct and that we’re not paying the payroll company too much.” Be specific!
- After either you (or your employee) has taken the first stab at the role description, meet in private and identify the holes. Many times the holes represent something that the employee didn’t perceive as part of his or her responsibility or something they don’t know how to do.This is where you can begin to identify training opportunities and mentoring, and begin to get clear about whether this person is a good fit for the position.
- Make it official. Take the time to put the job description in writing. Going forward, it will be a great tool to use when you check in on progress during the workweek and at annual performance reviews.
Here’s the deal. You may indeed have the wrong person in the right position and need to fire someone. But until you have clearly defined jobs and the descriptions that go with them, you can’t tell the difference between an under-performing employee and someone who just doesn’t know what your expectations are.
Before you fire someone – and absolutely before you hire someone else and potentially recreate the same problem – take the time to develop job descriptions and clarify what everyone’s expectations are.